This article caused a stir and in particular got bakers talking about ascorbic acid as an additive to sourdough. The talk continues in this post forum post by John Downes, who featured in the Melbourne Age article:

I've noticed a trend in the last 10 years towards food that is "real". Everything is now labeled as "real", from Colombian chocolate, to Wendy's dollar menu. When did this happen? It certainly wasn't the case in the 80s. I believe that with the growing popularity of sourdough, more bakeries are trying to mimic the style without knowing the real techniques or history of sourdough.